A day after arresting Shweta, the elder daughter of the family from Puducherry in connection with the gruesome triple murder in Bengaluru, the police have intensified efforts to trace her live-in partner Kenneth, who remains absconding.

Six special teams have been deployed across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to track him down.

Investigators said that the couple had initially planned to murder only Shweta’s mother, Muthulakshmi, and dispose of her body at a different location. According to the probe, the duo intended to shift the body during the night after killing her.

However, their plan was disrupted when Shweta’s father and younger sister returned home on the day of the crime around 8.30 p.m. The police believe the unexpected arrival forced the accused to kill the two additional family members, resulting in the triple murder.

The investigation has revealed that Kenneth had rented a second one-bedroom apartment in Gururaj Layout near HAL in addition to the flat he occupied in K.R. Puram. The police suspect that the rented flat was intended to be used for moving and concealing the victim’s body. The apartment, rented for ₹15,000 a month, is now under scrutiny after officers reportedly found several suspicious items during a search.

The investigators said Shweta and Kenneth visited the flat carrying newly purchased suitcases after the murders. During searches of the other rented house linked to Kenneth in Doddanekkundi, the police recovered a plastic drum, a cutter and a hammer. The discovery of these items at the residence of a software engineer has raised further suspicion about possible plans to dispose of the bodies.

The police suspect the accused went directly to the Doddanekkundi house after committing the murders. The investigators believe they mixed chilli powder with hot water and splashed it inside the premises, allegedly to destroy evidence. Blood-stained hands were also reportedly washed there.

Although Kenneth had shifted to the flat in Sigehalli nearly two months ago, he had retained the older rented house. The investigators are examining whether the property was kept specifically for concealing or destroying the bodies. This has led the police to suspect that Muthulakshmi’s body was temporarily kept in the toilet as part of the alleged disposal plan.

According to the police, Shweta, who was in a live-in relationship with Kenneth, had accumulated debts of around ₹30 lakh with him. The couple frequently quarrelled with her family over a share in the family property. The investigators suspect the murders were committed after her parents refused to divide the property.

Shweta was produced before the 47th ACMM court, which remanded her to seven days of police custody.